Hip Hop Album Sales: The Week Ending 9/15/2013

    This week, new additions placed in the Top 5 of Billboard’s Top 200 album charts. Those new additions include The Weeknd’s Kiss Land, 2 Chainz’ B.O.A.T.S. II: #MeTime and Janelle Monae’s The Electric Lady

    While new additions came in strong, last week’s debuts fell a few slots. For example, Ariana Grande’s Yours Truly fell from #1 to #9, Tamar Braxton’s Love & War fell from #2 to #8 and John Legend’s Love in the Future fell from #4 to #10. 

    It was the chart’s mainstays who continued their reign in the Top 30. In its 10th week on the charts, Jay Z’s Magna Carta Holy Grail, which has sold just over 974,000 copies to date, remained in the #18 spot it held last week. Macklemore & Ryan Lewis’ The Heist, which has sold over 1,069,000 copies to date, dropped from #27 to #30 in its 49th week on the charts. 

    The Weeknd Lands At #1 With Kiss Land

    The Weeknd’s Kiss Land hit #1 on the charts this week in a close race against Keith Urban, who landed at #2. Recently, The Weeknd spoke about the significance and theme of the album. “Kiss Land symbolizes the tour life, but it’s a world that I created in my head,” The Weeknd said in an interview with Complex. “When I think about Kiss Land, I think about a terrifying place. It’s a place I’ve never been to before that I’m very unfamiliar with…A lot of it is inspired by filmmakers like John Carpenter, David Cronenberg, and Ridley Scott, because they know how to capture fear. That’s what Kiss Land is to me, an environment that’s just honest fear. I don’t know who I am right now and I’m doing all these outlandish things in these settings that I’m not familiar with. To me, it’s the most terrifying thing ever. So when you hear the screams in the record and you hear all these horror references and you feel scared, listen to the music because I want you to feel what I’m feeling. Kiss Land is like a horror movie.” 

    2 Chainz Sails To #3 With B.O.A.T.S. II: #MeTime

    2 Chainz returns to the charts with B.O.A.T.S. II: #MeTime, an album that landed at #3 this week. The project, which contains the Pharrell-assisted single “Feds Watching,” was released through Def Jam and T.R.U. 2 Chainz also released a cookbook, with tour recipes, which accompanied the deluxe edition of the album. The album snuck into the Top 3 in its debut week, selling approximately 64,000 units. As the title suggests, B.O.A.T.S. II is a sequel to Based on a T.R.U. Story. By comparison, the first installment of this series sold approximately 147,000 units in its first week and it was #1 on the same charts. 

    Janelle Monae Electrifies At #5 With The Electric Lady 

    Janelle Monae’s The Electric Lady, released via Bad Boy/Atlantic, landed at #5 on the charts. The album boasts various guest stars, including Esperanza Spalding, Solange, Miguel, Prince and Erykah Badu. Monae’s success with Electric Lady follows 2010’s THE ARCHANDROID. According to Monae, Electric Lady was inspired by various notable figures in the film industry. “George Lucas [influenced this album],” Monae said in a recent interview with Hitflix. “I performed at his wedding reception…I met him and I got a chance to speak with Steven Spielberg, and these are people whose ideas, you know, if they weren’t able to make their movies, I don’t think that I would have been able to articulate my thoughts [in music]. They kind of showed me how to do that, I just wanted to do it with music.” 

    Hip Hop Album Sales: The Week Ending 9/15/2013

    #1. The Weeknd – Kiss Land – 99,000 (99,000)

    #3. 2 Chainz – B.O.A.T.S. II #MeTime – 64,000 (64,000)

    #5. Janelle Monae – The Electric Lady – 47,000 (47,000)

    #8. Tamar Braxton – Love & War – 35,000 (149,000)

    #9. Ariana Grande – Yours Truly – 31,000 (169,000)

    #10. John Legend – Love in the Future – 30,000 (98,000)

    #18. Jay Z – Magna Carta Holy Grail – 17,000 (974,000)

    #28. Juicy J – Stay Trippy – 13,000 (99,000)

    #30. Macklemore & Ryan Lewis – The Heist – 12,000 (1,069,000)

    #36. Big Sean – Hall of Fame – 9,000 (99,000)

    #47. Kendrick Lamar – good kid, m.A.A.d. city – 6,000 (1,033,000) 

    * data comes from Nielsen Soundscan, rounded to nearest thousand for units above 10,000, nearest hundredth for units below 10,000. Each week, HipHopDX presents top albums in Hip Hop/related, and five notables.

    Will The Roots & Elvis Costello reach a Top 10 placement next week? Stay tuned to HipHopDX.

    Last Week’s Album Sales.

    RELATED: Hip Hop Album Sales: The Week Ending 9/8/2013

    329 thoughts on “Hip Hop Album Sales: The Week Ending 9/15/2013

    1. How does 2 Chainz sell less than Tyler the Creator, Mac Miller and Big Sean first week? Thats fucking pathetic for him!

      1. I’m happy with the results. He’s a talentless schmuck. Watching Movies with the Sound Off was surprisingly good. I’m by no means a Mac Miller fan, but it is one of the better albums, commercial or underground, that I’ve heard this year.

      2. thats bullshit. why would they do that? if they thought he could move 200k they would have shipped 3 or 400k and made more money. but they cut their losses cause they know his buzz in dying

      3. they do that because theyre afraid of taking a loss and they werent sure how well it could do…first week album sales are predetermined a week or 2 beforehand because of how many copies the label decides to ship out…when you see an artist sell 35k on a major its because the label only shipped 50k…they tend to sell 60-70% of what is shipped out…had def jam/universal shipped more than 100k 2chainz would have probably done better

      4. if that was the case they would have shipped them out though. why would they choose to make less money if they really thought he could sell more? Makes no sense

      5. because it costs them money when they overship and have to take the albums that stay on the shelf back…nowadays record labels cant afford to take that many losses

      6. SO Wale, J Cole, Kanye’s label were all prepared to take losses cause they all sold 2 or 3 times what 2 chainz did at least

      7. no because they had popular singles that already made the label some money giving them a reason to put more money into their projects(aside from kanye who was gunna sell more than 300k off the hype alone). Feds watching is no where near as big a song as power trip or bad

    2. HipHopDX, you missed another hiphop album that charted, Derek Minor’s “Minorville”. Don’t have exact sales figures but i’m sure it charted.

      1. That’s because country music sounds like country music, and their performers aren’t trying to sound like some genre they’re not like R&B rap and vice versa.

    3. These charts really show he power of Drake. Last time 2 Chainz had a hit single with Drake and his album outperformed. This time his single is with Pharell and the album underperformed. Then you have The Weekend, who we know is not currently affiliated with Drake, but most music fans don’t know that. And let’s not forget Kendrick. The best-selling single on the album had Drake on it and the CD is platinum. NWTS will be platinum in a week.

      1. Since Birdman already brought a million, it’s practically Platinum as we speak. And considering that they rip-off artists like nobody else in the industry (which means Drake won’t give a dime from that), it’s like Baby taking out dollar stacks from his left pocket and putting in to the right.

      2. ….so why didnt birdman buy copies of the rich gang album to make it sell more than 25k?
        no one makes money off album sales anymore…if an artist sells 1 million copies on a major they wont get more than $250-300k
        you have no clue what youre talking about do something else with your time

    4. hi haters. first it was weezus the based god now its big sean with that hall of fame ish that outsells kendrick. yall make it like kendrick is the new hotness. but king sean outsells kendrick buy 3000 units. this is big man. sean got another monster with HOF. hes got singles for days and deep cuts. im sorry but kendrick is over. he barley sold 6k. i mean come on. this is lame for “Hottest rapper alive” sorry but ya bois weezus and king sean at it again. ya bish? ya you bish. ya damn bish!!!!

      1. LMAO @ you spending the time to comment on your own shit as someone else…kendrick sold more than HOF, Not a human being 2, and dreams and nightmares combined

    5. 1KEITH URBANCAPITOL NASHVILLE102,881–
      FUSE
      –2THE WEEKNDXO/REPUBLIC97,985–
      KISS LAND
      –32 CHAINZDEF JAM/IDJ60,664–
      B.O.A.T.S. II #METIME
      44LUKE BRYANCAPITOL NASHVILLE52,279-23%
      CRASH MY PARTY
      –5JANELLE MONAEBAD BOY/ATLANTIC47,894–
      ELECTRIC LADY
      –6ARCTIC MONKEYSDOMINO39,605–
      AM
      –7SHERYL CROWWARNER BROS. NASHVILLE37,340–
      FEELS LIKE HOME
      28TAMAR BRAXTONEPIC34,688-70%
      LOVE & WAR
      19ARIANA GRANDEREPUBLIC31,318-77%
      YOURS TRULY
      510JOHN LEGENDCOLUMBIA30,226-54%
      LOVE IN THE FUTURE
      –11EARTH, WIND & FIRELEGACY26,632–
      NOW, THEN & FOREVER
      812AVENGED SEVENFOLDWARNER BROS.23,465-41%
      HAIL TO THE KING
      313NINE INCH NAILSCOLUMBIA21,869-79%
      HESITATION MARKS
      614ROBIN THICKESTAR TRAK/INTERSCOPE19,812-65%
      BLURRED LINES
      –15KASKADEULTRA19,565–
      ATMOSPHERE
      1716FLORIDA GEORGIA LINEREPUBLIC NASHVILLE18,813-9%
      HERE’S TO THE GOOD TIMES
      –17RISE AGAINSTINTERSCOPE17,519–
      LONG FORGOTTEN SONGS: B-SIDES &
      1918JAY ZROC-A-FELLA/ROC NATION17,324-13%
      MAGNA CARTA… HOLY GRAIL
      –19GLORIA ESTEFANSONY MASTERWORKS16,830–
      STANDARDS
      720JAHEIMATLANTIC16,266-71%
      APPRECIATION DAY
      2921BRUNO MARSATLANTIC15,362-3%
      UNORTHODOX JUKEBOX
      1822NOW 47UME15,236-25%
      VARIOUS ARTISTS
      1423JOHN MAYERCOLUMBIA13,392-37%
      PARADISE VALLEY
      1024IMAGINE DRAGONSKIDINAKORNER/INTERSCOPE13,317-64%
      NIGHT VISIONS
      3625LORDELAVA/REPUBLIC12,975-2%
      LOVE CLUB EP
      2026TEEN BEACHWALT DISNEY12,822-34%
      SOUNDTRACK
      1527JUICY JCOLUMBIA12,668-40%
      STAY TRIPPY
      2228TGTATLANTIC12,666-32%
      THREE KINGS
      1129BASTILLEVIRGIN12,645-63%
      BAD BLOOD
      2830MACKLEMORE & RYAN LEWISMACKLEMORE11,553-27%
      HEIST
      931JUSTIN TIMBERLAKERCA10,188-74%
      20/20 EXPERIENCE
      1332BLAKE SHELTONWARNER BROS. NASHVILLE9,736-59%
      BASED ON A TRUE STORY
      3033FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCHPROSPECT PARK9,587-39%
      WRONG SIDE OF HEAVEN, VOL. 1
      2334LANA DEL REYINTERSCOPE9,436-48%
      BORN TO DIE
      3835THE CIVIL WARSSENSIBILITY/COLUMBIA9,119-25%
      THE CIVIL WARS
      2636BIG SEANDEF JAM/IDJ8,922-46%
      HALL OF FAME
      4137K. MICHELLEATLANTIC8,414-21%
      REBELLIOUS SOUL
      4538MUMFORD & SONSGLASSNOTE8,209-12%
      BABEL
      3439GREAT GATSBYINTERSCOPE8,104-42%
      SOUNDTRACK
      3940ONE DIRECTIONSYCO/COLUMBIA8,058-32%
      TAKE ME HOME
      3741JIMMY BUFFETTMAILBOAT7,779-39%
      SONGS FROM ST SOMEWHERE
      –42JASON ALDEANBROKEN BOW7,679–
      NIGHT TRAIN
      3243ALABAMA & FRIENDSSHOW DOG7,675-48%
      VARIOUS ARTISTS
      4244LUKE BRYANCAPITOL NASHVILLE7,433-30%
      TAILGATES & TANLINES
      4845DAFT PUNKCOLUMBIA7,256-17%
      RANDOM ACCESS MEMORIES
      1246NEKO CASEANTI7,151-71%
      THE WORSE THINGS GET, THE HARDER
      3347SELENA GOMEZHOLLYWOOD7,127-50%
      STARS DANCE
      –48MICHAEL BUBLEREPRISE7,044–
      TO BE LOVED
      4949TAYLOR SWIFTBIG MACHINE6,913-19%
      RED
      4050ALEJANDRO FERNANDEZUNIVERSAL MUSIC LATINO6,884-36%
      CONFIDENCIAS

      1. but yet ace hoods dropped 4 albums in the last 5 years…you dont know how much was spent on those albums go outside and do something with your instead of worrying about whether or not people you dont know sold the right amount of albums for them to recoup…

      1. Done get mad haterrrrrrs!! QUIT hating

        Jayz Had 10x the promotion for his album, kendrick had DR Dre and interscope behind him. Macklemore had… RYAN LEWIS!!

        Ya’ll negros, whites, hispanics, reptilians, whatever YOU are, YOU need to wake up.

        Mack sold more rap records than ANY rapper this year. Independently platinum. So stop being a racist, appreciate great hip hop art, this guy is bringing millions of people who dnt like rap, into our culture. show some respect YOUNGEN!!

    6. Hiphopdx had a typo there. Let me fix it for you.

      2 Chainz: 265k copies.

      2 Chainz didnt sell just 65k copies. He’s been featured on the radio alot and is backed by ymcmb and mmg.

    7. Dang, I thought 2 Chainz would sale more then that. Checkout thegrandreport, they got some good hip hop videos on there

    8. LOL!! How the fuck can you sell less than your last album in just a year? 2 Chainz will be going wood this time.

      1. Because he’s a joke. He always been a joke. It’s just now the joke has been told so many times that nobody finds it funny anymore.

    9. Nah niggas 2 Chainz last album was consistent selling 50-60 K a week. Niggas be stupid saying boats 2 is going wood. It’s only been out one week.

    10. If Janelle Monae was white she would be HUGE. Her music is better then most artists out right now. She deserves to be as popular a Lady Gaga or Justin Bieber or Taylor Swift. I’m not impressed by those sales, but not surprised because her last album wasn’t really successful either. Such a shame…

      1. 47,000 doesn’t look like much, but they are strong numbers, to say the least. Especially in this economy. Had Janelle came out around the late nineties or the early 2000s when music was really popping, and sold twice or even ten times as much, then it might have been a big deal.

    11. Man HiphopDX is losing all credibility…”Kissland” debuted at #2, not 1.

      How do you write an entire article about it being #1 when the numbers are right in front of your face. HDD, Billboard & wikipedia all confirm Keith Urban outsold The Weeknd.

      1. the albums they post here seem to be all hip hop nd r&b so DX probly just took out keith urban cause were not here to see country music

    12. “kendrick sold more than HOF, Not a human being 2, and dreams and nightmares combined”

      When Kendrick goes platinum in a week call me.

      1. ….what does selling a mil first week 5 years ago have to do with what i said?
        your butt buddy wayne is losing his momentum right now his lyrics are getting worse by the day and he dropped 4 major videos n only sold 600,000…even though its not an official album you would think “the top rapper in the game” would have done better

    13. Done get mad haterrrrrrs!! QUIT hating

      Jayz Had 10x the promotion for his album, kendrick had DR Dre and interscope behind him. Macklemore had… RYAN LEWIS!!

      Ya’ll negros, whites, hispanics, reptilians, whatever YOU are, YOU need to wake up.

      Mack sold more rap records than ANY rapper this year. Independently platinum. So stop being a racist, appreciate great hip hop art, this guy is bringing millions of people who dnt like rap, into our culture. show some respect YOUNGEN!!

      1. sold more albums than any1 “this year” he came out last year though jay z is less than 100 k behind with an album that has less than 3 months on the shelves

    14. Damn when I said 2Chainz was going to sell less than 85k I wasn’t even completely convinced.. never expected him to flop this bad though!

      1. Less than Tyler the Creator and Mac Miller! fucking pathetic. he gonna need to change his name again and try another comeback LOL

    15. Even The Weeknd knows he didnt have the number 1 album he thought he did at first but they recounted or something and he lost the spot by 3k

    16. CONGRATS TO THE WEEKND I BEEN LISTENIN TO THIS SUPERSTAR FOR OVER A YEAR THERE IS NO ARTIST LIKE HIM PERIOD. # 1 FUCKIN 2 CHAINZ I WOULD SAY FLOP FLOP FLOP EVEN WITH THE FEATURES… FEATURES USUALLY ADD TO FAILURE PERIOD. MACKLEMORE KILLIN THE GAME LETS BE REAL HERE HE ISN’T WITH INTERSCOPE , ATLANTIC , DEF JAM HE IS I N D E P E N D A N T …. NOW THEY ALL WANT A PIECE AND HE STAYING SOLO THAT JUST SAYS FUCK THESE LABELS. AND KING KENDRICK WELL HE IN A LANE BY HIMSELF NEW DRE NEW SHADY MOLDED IN ONE….

      1. we’ve been telling them for weeks that macklemore is with wmg, just sit back and laugh at the goobers who will believe anything

      2. MACKLEMORE IS INDEPENDENT. HIS LABEL IS “MACKLEMORE LLC.” HE IS NOT ON A MAJOR LABEL. HE MAY HAVE A MAJOR DISTRIBUTING HIS MUSIC BUT HE IS INDEPENDENT!

      3. Why would Macklemore ever sign with Officer Ricky

        in one he he got 1 single 7x plat, another single 4x plat, an indie album platinum, shit he did more in 2 year than ross did in 10 years

    17. like Barry said I am dazzled that a mother able to profit $8387 in a few weeks on the internet. browse around this site… http://www.Fb39.com

      And please reconsider you war on drugs” is a reflection of this line, and actually the last verse as a whole. It was skillfully done.

      1. Baby you summertime fine, i let you get on top i be the underline. im trying to get beside you like the number 9, dime. you fine as hell, you summertime fine.

    18. Hello my close friends. I am here to confess to you the sins that I have made over the years. First of all I have never slept with Nicki Minaj, Drake, 50 Cent, or any other rapper. I am just a guy that works for the vet in my small town. I hope i have made friends with some of you over time you will support me. Although I have never met drake, it is true that i would like to suck his dick. Yes, that is right im coming out of the closet. I am a girl.

    19. BOATS 2 sales were unaccounted. It actually sold 500k this week. It was underaccounted beecause most of the sales came from indie stores.

      1. aight let me air out dentaltoothbitch for a minute, if you google his screen name you get a yahoo answers account under the name of his other alias Yebo. you click it and the account name is dentaldamboy. here’s the link

        answers.yahoo.com/activity?show=vySLrr9qaa

      2. dental douche they don;t sell 2 chainz album in indie stores. take your ass back to you cashier til at whole foods ya granola eating bitch

      1. That’s because Juicy is a fuckin LEGEND! I’m REAL happy with his numbers, that’s dope!! And his album is dope as hell too!! Big Sean flopped big time..BTW, 2 Chainz career about to be over! Haha, 64 thousand? Damn son, you better save your money bro! Your wack ass is going downhill fast!!

      1. no he didnt. he sold like 86k first week

        fucking mac miller sold more than game, tyler the creator sold more than Game, dude is washed up

    20. Eazy-E kept it so real and sick that he died and overdosed on AIDS. Don’t fuck with the corporation executives y’all.

      Tupac was about that Thug Life and kept it so street that he got clapped in the streets of Las Vegas. Biggie and Big L were so big in the streets, they got clapped in the NYC nigga.

      Chief Keef is so fucking street, he released baby gangsta tears when he found out he was going to the little kids’ slammer for 30 days. Keeps it so black that he has bad credit, doesn’t pay rent on time, gets no education, and never shows up on time. Keeps it 3hunna, just like Gucci Mane when he slappin’ bitch ass hoes.

      DMX kept is so real he did crack and went into the slammer 69 times, 69 places, 69 different positions.

      Too Short kept it so real he ran from the cops while under the influence. He’s a player.

      50 Cent kept it so real and kept his bitches in check, his ass got checked and charged with domestic violence.

      Lil Wayne keeps is so real, he’s able to be a Blood, Crip, and a Punk Rocker all at once (doesn’t get realer than that shit). He also performs homoerotic hood rituals with Birdman every weekend. That shit is fucking trill.

      Meek Mill keeps it so street, he fucks with a former officer to get him off the streets. William Roberts meeting Robert Williams. Street connections baby.

      I mean, when does keeping it real ever go wrong……?

      1. all these rappers are frauds but there is only one true real nigga heavyweight champion of the world. And that is BIG GUWOP GUCCI MANE

        GUCCI MANE is the realest rapper and heres why.
        1) all other rappers rap about being gangster shooting and killing but they havent done it.
        2) Eminem raps about killing he hasnt.
        3)Jay z raps in open letter about sending shots he hasnt.
        4)Nas raps about how he is a queens thug but he wasn’t.
        5)Most of the rappers rap about stuff they havent done yet you all support them and say its real rap.
        6)When rick ross does it you all claim he is fake and say its fake rap.

        This shows that hiphop fans are hypocritical and all these real hiphop fan wanna be’s are just some unjustified haters whose opinions are just as irrelevent as the swag fag rapper fans.

        GUCCI MANE KILLED A MAN HE WAS A DRUG DEALER BEFORE RAPPER HE HAS STREET CREDENTIALS HE IS THE ONLY RAPPER THAT RAPS ABOUT FACTS THERE FORE BIG GUWOP IS THE REALEST RAPPER IN THE RAP GAME AND THATS A FACT!

    21. As a recording artist for Cash Money Records known as Detail aka Noel Fisher, I can confirm that Nas’s whole discography have been overaccounted due to hype by middle school teenage virgins online. Also, Lil Wayne’s “I’m Not A Human Being II” and Rich Gang’s album have been underaccounted and sold 20 billion copies worldwide. I get it! 305 to My city because everyday is sunshine

    22. Projections are in

      Maybach Music Group (Atlantic) 50-55k (HITS Daily Double)

      THATS A FLOP!!! BITCH ITS OVER FOR OFFICER ROSS

      1. Ross selling a million or not, at the end of the day 90% of you people is still living with your mommies and Ross is still richer than all of you put together.
        It hurts, but it’s the truth. Tomorrow when you wake up, you’ll go to your shitty car and go to your shitty work, if you even have one and that’s it.
        Rick Ross will wake up with a bitch next to him and he’ll do whatever he wants.

      2. and the bitch next to him will likely have been paid money just to get into bed with him or maybe he drugged her the night before to he could rape her and she aint even know it!

      3. 200k first week when he was mtvs so called hottest rapper in the game.

        kendrick came out did 242k, and went plat in 8 months on rickys ass

    23. How much Time is this nigga spending on the intro (5 seconds)

      The new results are in for the week after next week’s top 5 hip hop album sales
      1. Drake, Nothing Was The Same- 530,000 (530,000)
      2. MMG, Self Made Vol. 3 – 30,000 (120, 000)
      3. Jay-Z, Magna Carta Holy Grail – 14,000 (1,003,000
      4. 2 Chainz, B. O. A. T. S. II #MeTime – 12,000 (97,000)
      5. Big Sean, Hall of Fame – 9,000 (120,000)

      1. yeah rozay is the real thang, 50 just a snitch.. rozay is areal hustla, 50 hasnt even never moved dem GraaammZZ.. Matterfact I would not wonder if 50 was a officer before he turned snitch… rozay did run the boulevard when he was young G!!! #SALUTE #GFID

      2. that 50 snitching shit is 8-9 years old now and theres no merit to it…even 50s enemies said he put work in on guy brewer blvd

    24. Self Made Vol. 3 drops today. It arrives at a curious time for Rick Rosss label, Maybach Music Group. For the first year in recent memory, MMG singles werent a mainstay on the pop charts, or even the hip-hop charts, in 2013. There was no Stay Schemin this summer, no B.M.F. no “Tupac Back.” While Meek Mills Levels undoubtedly reached a level of cultural penetration as a concept, the song itself sat comfortably outside of the Hot 100 the entire season. Wale managed to do a little better. His latest album Gifted has sold a comfortable 250,000 copies, but Bad, his only song to go Top 40, relied heavily on signer Tiara Thomass hookand the songs original version pre-dated Wale.

      But asterisks or not, Wale at least managed to make some noise on the charts. Ross didnt even manage that level of success. His singles Box Chevy and Oil Money Gang didn’t even make the R&B/Hip-Hop charts. His latest, No Games, is strong enough to break this spell, although whether it will garner Ross some dearly needed chart traction remains to be seen.

      Of course, Ross didnt completely vanish from the charts this yearhe just fell into the guest spot, as Rockos U.O.E.N.O. and Jay Zs fukkwitmeyouknowIgotit became hits. In some ways, though, their success almost seemed to mock Rosss quiet summer. The former did more harm than good, knocking him out of his Reebok deal thanks to his infamous lines about dropping molly in champagne. The latter sounded like an MMG single in every way, as if teasing Ross for giving away such a surefire hit. “No New Friends,” meanwhile, just emphasized how much bigger of a hitmaker Drake is than anyone else on the song, at this particular point in time.

      The irony of Wale becoming MMGs frontrunner is that his success was the most unconventional, and remains slightly off-brand for a label built on Rick Rosss mob-boss imagery. But thus far, it seems to fit in pretty well with the style of hip-hop that is doing better on the charts these days, as Wale sits next to J. Cole, Macklemore, and other rap artists whove moved the genres mainstream in a direction away from the streets. There are a couple of factors that have caused this shift. The first is that, with a plethora of free music on DatPiff, and fewer and fewer people buying albums, those who do tend to be able to afford such fetish objects are of a different socioeconomic demographic. The popular taste, at least as represented by sales, ends up skewing along cla## lines.

      Another, more troubling development, concerns the decreasing significance of black radio as a tastemaker; as Billboard began to incorporate digital downloads and streaming, they lost their ability to qualify listenerships geographically, and along other demographic lines, as they had been able to do in the past. Add to this an imbalance in which streams are counted towards the charts (for example, WorldStarHipHop still has no impact on Billboard charts), and you end up with some bizarre results, like Macklemore or Psy topping the hip-hop charts without any hip-hop radio airplay.

      But the hip-hop charts arent all college-friendly hip-hop and crossover artists like Macklemore. Clubs are still a driving force in hip-hops sound (as is, increasingly, Vine, a viral appendage of the club, helping singles like The FiNATTiCZ Dont Drop That Thun Thun make Billboard a year after their release). In the last half of 2013, the most popular hip-hop has made a gradual shift from the Atlanta sounds of Mike Will Made It and DJ Spinz towards Californias self-described ratchet sound: the syncopated thump of producers like DJ Mustard. You can hear it from Cali newcomers like Sage the Gemini, whose Red Nose and Gas Pedal singles have had significant chart traction. You can hear it in singles from Atlanta artists like Rich Homie Quan and Young Jeezy (My nikka, “R.I.P.”). And you hear it on crossover R&B cuts like B. Smyths Leggo.

      MMG’s primary sonic blueprint, however, remains a mix of aggro bangers in a “B.M.F.” style, channelling an aggressive, visceral energy, and the smooth, epic luxurience of tracks like “Aston Martin Music,” “Keys to the Crib,” oron Self Made Vol. 3″Black Grammys.” It’s a sound that has seemed like a pretty renewable resource for the past few years, but as Drake has fine-tuned the latter sound to great chart success, and Cali usurped the club sound on the pop charts, MMG’s bangers have started to feel a bit off-center.

      At its peak, MMG was successful because they managed to mainstream a street sound, to take an underground aesthetic and propel into the popular conscience with a chart-ready pop framework. Perhaps they’ve slipped because the sound they built this empire on has slipped from the forefront of the genre’s innovation. This goes hand in hand with PR setbacks for the label, like Ross’s troubles with Reebok and the underperformance of Meek Mill’s official debut. On the one hand, popular rap has moved further from the streets and clubs; on the street side, it’s an increasingly younger artist’s game. MMG is stuck in the middle, flanked on one side by YouTube street rappers, and on the other by stars with more bankable, mainstream-friendly sounds.

      MMG has attempted to meet that challenge with new signees, all of whom are given ample shine on the new compilation. The risk is that increasing the label’s roster at a time when its top tier performers are underperforming only serves to dilute the group’s impact. On the other hand, if one or two of the performers were to have a breakout performance, it could add needed energy to a flagging franchise. Sadly, the most animated, moving performance comes from Lil Snupe, who was k#lled tragically earlier this year, cutting short a promising career. Stalley and Rockie Fresh are competent, but not personalities on the level of the MMG A-list. And Gunplay remains a critics’ favorite, underrated by the wider world, but he’s on the other side of 30, and still seemingly in search of that one song that could take him to the next level.

      Not that there isn’t hope for MMG. The label’s slippage has been more about perception and context than it has an inconsistency in product. The world rotated once and artists at a creative zenith are pulled back to earth. But for every challenge that has beset the label since Rich Forever made Ross seem like a truly untouchable performerfrom his seizures to Meek’s album, from singles not connecting to Lil Snupe’s k#lling, from the date-rape lyric controversy to hip-hop’s shift away from the MMG sonic blueprintMMG has remained consistent. Self Made 3 isn’t as good as Self Made, but, to this writer’s ears, it’s stronger than Self Made 2.

      And there are few real challengers to Ross’s particular space. Gucci’s got an iron grip on the streets, but has marginalized himself from the mainstream pop sphere. Drake’s tracks are mainstream-friendly but don’t offer the macho bangers Ross’s audience feeds on. Young Jeezy is the only one to pose much of a challenge recentlyas he’s jumped on board with DJ Mustard and Rich Homie Quan, managing to keep up with a shifting sonic landscape. But it remains to be seen if artists like Doughboyz Cashout and YG can overcome the problems Jeezy has always had in marketing artists on his CTE label.

      It is a bit disconcerting for MMG, no doubt, that they’ve been unable to impact the charts this year. But perception of the labels demise is easy to overstate. Its not as if Ross’s voice has disappeared from the airwaves. MMGs dominance is, to some degree, taken for granted. They were never innovators, and dont have to rely upon that kind of short-term inspiration for success. Instead, they are all about consistency. Ross built upon the sounds of others, put them on a wider stage. His pen is as strong as ever. Panera Bread, from earlier this year, included some of his best writing yet. Yes, MMG may have peaked, but theyre also one label that it would be unwise to count out completely.

      1. I’m pretty sure Ross didn’t release Box Top Chevy with the notion it was going to sell millions. It kept his name buzzing, and gave millions of fans a new song to hear.

      2. millions? LOL we have already established ross doesnt have 1 million legit fans or he would have been platinum by now!!!

    25. GUCCI MANE is the realest rapper and heres why.
      1) all other rappers rap about being gangster shooting and killing but they havent done it.
      2) Eminem raps about killing he hasnt.
      3)Jay z raps in open letter about sending shots he hasnt.
      4)Nas raps about how he is a queens thug but he wasn’t.
      5)Most of the rappers rap about stuff they havent done yet you all support them and say its real rap.
      6)When rick ross does it you all claim he is fake and say its fake rap.

      This shows that hiphop fans are hypocritical and all these real hiphop fan wanna be’s are just some unjustified haters whose opinions are just as irrelevent as the swag fag rapper fans.

      GUCCI MANE KILLED A MAN HE WAS A DRUG DEALER BEFORE RAPPER HE HAS STREET CREDENTIALS HE IS THE ONLY RAPPER THAT RAPS ABOUT FACTS THERE FORE BIG GUWOP IS THE REALEST RAPPER IN THE RAP GAME AND THATS A FACT!

      1. stop copying and pasting this shit…gucci bought the studio the dude who killed slim dunkin owned so hes pretty much paying for dudes lawyers fees for a case where he killed guccis friend…thats not real

    26. How sweet it is!! Macklemore the biggest selling rapper of last two years!! Funny to see these haters talk down about macklemore . He sold more than ur favorite rapper. O yA his single thrift shop is certified 7x platinum!!

      None of ur favorite rappers did that!!! Not gay z, Lil playne, or Kanye east!!!

      Lol

    27. Dre fucks with Rozay!!! Enough said!!!

      Even Dre knows this clown 50 is a hoe ass nigga.
      Even Nas knows!!!
      Even Jay-Z knows!!!
      Even Game knows!!!
      Even Ciara knows!!!
      Even Chelsea Handler knows!!
      Even MMG knows!!!
      Even Diddy know!!!
      Even Ja-Rule knows!!!
      Even Camron knows!!
      Even Styles P knows!!!
      Even Young Buck knows!!!
      Murder Inc. knows he is a snitch!!!

      1. and they all know Ross is a fat fraud who never sold a kilo in his life. they see him and see dollar signs. thats it. no one respects ross

      2. 50 and Nas are cool they got no beef.

        MMG knows it huh? Meek Mill must have missed that memo cause he always talking about how much respect he has for 50 despite being signed to Officer Ross.

        Game is a hoe ass nigga who started a petition for a G-Unit reunion earlier this year so I don’t think he knows it…

    28. 50 CENT IS AN IRRELEVANT HACK THAT NEEDS ATTENTION. HE NEVER WAS SHOT ONCE AND CLAIMS TO BE A THUG. HAHA. TUPAC WAS A BALLERINA, DR. DRE IS GAY, SNOOP BITCH IS A LAZY MOFO, EMINEM IS A CROSSDRESSING SELLOUT, GAME WAS A GAY MALE STRIPPER AND KENDRICK LAMAR IS BORING AND M.A.A.D. WACK.

      WANT TO MEET A REAL RAPPER? MEET HOPSIN! HE PRODUCES HIS OWN TRACKS, RAPS BETTER THAN EVERY RAPPER THAT EVER LIVED, GOT FAMOUS ON HIS OWN AND NEVER SOLD HIS SOUL. HOPSIN IS ONE OF THE FEW RAPPERS WHO RAPS ABOUT REAL LIFE AND NOT CANDY SHOPS OR HOUSE PARTIES LIKE ALL THESE LAME RAPPERS.

      HOPSIN >>> EMINEM/LUPE FIASSHOLE
      MC JIN >>> TUPAC/NAS
      IMMORTAL TECHNIQUE >>> 50 CENT/JAY-Z
      LOWKEY >>> KENDRICK LAMER/KANYE WEST
      VINNIE PAZ >>> GAME/BIGGIE
      EAZY-E >>> DR. DRE/ICE CUBE

      1. you must be an underground snob nerd kid that just heard immortal technique a month ago, everything he’s done since the first 2 revolutionary albums was trash

    29. 50 don’t hang around you unless you can make him money. This dude’s head is stuck in the 48 laws of power, and strictly business-oriented. That’s cool if you’re selfish and only care about money, but the dude has no balance, and clearly couldn’t balance his business aspects of his life with his actual friendships. 50 stands close to the fire to keep warm. He was in the barbershop with Soulja Boy back in 07 when Soulja was buzzin hard, and 50 was using Soulja’s buzz to help out his own ass, especially since his album was coming out that same year. And now 50 cruising around LA with Chief Keef?

      You gotta be kidding me. 50 comes and goes around whoever he’s with. He comes when they’re buzzin, and dips when it’s over. On to the next venture that can make me money. This dude don’t care about his fans. He only cares that they can make him money. He always been into publicity, always beefing, and always around album time. The people know it, and now nobody gives a shit except his hardcore fans that are still stuck in the past and still think G-Unit is popping. They probly still got unopened G-Unit sneakers in their closet too, probly still rock the G-Unit spinner chains. Fuck outta here.

      This dude couldn’t adapt to the rap enviornment, I think the only reason he reconciled with Fat Joe was to keep his name buzzin. All about attention, controversy, publicity, drama, and beef. And all to keep his name buzzin, so he can sell more records, and make more money. How’s the feeding people in Africa coming along, fif? Why you stop promoting that? Not making enough money as you thought? Come on son!

      1. you idiot chris lighty is why him and joe cool they lost a long time friend 50 don’t need a “BUZZ” he just don’t live off of his music like 95% of the rappers in the game

      2. If it was really all about the money why wouldnt he have left rap a long time ago when he stopped selling? why does he still put out free mixtapes?

        FOR THE LOVE OF THE MUSIC NIGGA

    30. 1 Eminem (lyricly the greatest ever and been on top for so long)

      2 Nas (Could be as good lyricly or even better then Slim

      3 Biggie (Greatest Flow ever)

      4 Kanye West (Completely changed how songs are produced. Listen to college drop out The way he produced that album is UNREAL)

      5 Jay Z (Great Rapper. RICH man. Nuff said)

      6 Rakim( Know as the GOD for a reason. First GREAT MC)

      7 Tupac (Most INFLUENTIAL rapper but NOT THE BEST)

      8 Andre 3000( goes toe to toe with anyone)

      9 Wu Tang Clan (as a group)

      10 DMX (realest rapper alive)

      1. I give it to 2Pac because the fact that he had about 3000 songs just sitting there at his death, he was 25. This shows how easily it just comes to him because he still probably has tons of hit verses that have never been released.

    31. All you niggas who dont believe 50 works with the feds are stupid. Rappers been saying that shit back when JMJ got shot to Jarule calling him a informant. 50 aint hot anything hot in a long time!! He always online, twitter or doing an interview trying to stay relevant. His style is played. He still talking bout shooting and murders on his lastest mixed tape….Please he been in the streets since his first album. He aint even in that circle no more. yall niggas better wake up. 50 was in it for the money not the art form or true love for hip hop. Niggas that have true love and passion for hip hop will never die, niggas in it for the money will fade away after the heat dies.

      1. whats your point? none of these rappers are in the streets but they all rap about it. at least 50 lived that shit unlike most of these fake niggas JA RULE INCLUDED he can talk about it for the rest of his life he took 9 slugs over that street shit

      2. if he was truly only in it for the money he would have bounced a long time ago. he got his money and hes good for life so why does he keep putting out free mixtapes?

      3. the only reason people said he was a snitch was cuz of ghetto qu’ran which was all common knowledge back then…he wasnt saying anything the cops didnt already know about years before it dropped

    32. if u a real nigga then u would pull your dick out and jack off while u watch Wayne speak, thats real , like any real nigga i got turned on but not in no gay homo way, on some real shit and started to stroke my dick when i felt a buldge in my pants get hard, and just stroked my dick until i felt all the cum spray out, thats real shit right there from seeing a real nigga speak made my dick hard and i had to take care of that for real

    33. French Montana is the new King of New York. Name one New York rapper that is as hot as him now? He runs New York even Flex said. IF it wasnt for French New York hip hop would be dead and irrelavant, he is keeping the scene popping. Sure he is weak on the mic, but what does that have to do with being a hot rapper.

      1. hes not from new york hes from morocco and hes more of a southern rapper

        you cant be a king if you only sell 50k first week on Bad Boy and MMG

      2. none of those dudes are kings of anything

        no one who wears skirts is a king of new york, rocky might be king of the homos and hipsters but thats it.

        joey badass hasnt sold 1 record he not king of his high school

    34. And you wonder why HHPDX staff doesn’t care too much about editing their site/articlesfor punctuation or grammer. They probably look at the comments section and see what kind of fucking idiots are visiting their site. Not all of you, but you know who i’m talking about. They probably assume fuck it, over half of these lames probably wont even catch the mistakes, so whats the point. Hiphop has the stupidest fucking fans out of any other genre of music, sad but very true. And if you get offended, then I am talking about you.

      1. lol well this is english and you must speak proper english in Microsoft Word or other Word programs so that you dont get the squiggly lines underneath your sentences and words. so based on basic grammar taught in grade school, we should abide those rules. so thus being a media website that is trying to project itself as the top they abide by these rules in the very least common denominator. if not then HipHopDX is no better than your average site created by some barely educated fool!

    35. So if someone shot me or made a criminal offense towards me and i went to authorities to get them behind bars where they belong instead of trying to be rambo and get a gun myself and take matters into my own hands , then I’d be a snitch???!?.. FUCK IT THEN!!

      1. its not really a problem unless you trying to claim stop snitching or the stret life like Game, Niggas manager is a federal informant and he got rich selling Stop snitching shit

    36. LIL WAYNE IS THE KIGN OF REAL HIP-HOP!

      HE IS A REAL BLOOD
      HE IS A PRO SKATER
      HE IS A GUITAR HERO
      HE IS THE BEST RAPPER ALIVE
      HE MURKED NASQUEER JONES
      HE MURKED TUFAG SHITKUR
      HE MURKED WACK THOUGHT

    37. like Clifford replied I’m stunned that any one can earn $9838 in a few weeks on the internet. special info… http://www.Fb39.com

      you’re in idiot, dude didn’t compare his music to shawshank. he was just pointing out that people like different shit in everything whether its music movies or whatever

    38. Tuscan Leather is the best intro I ever heard. Easily best song on the album.

    39. These numbers are pathetic. Everyone knows Jay-Z is gonna go platinum he did that his whole entire career. But 2 chains, Big Sean, and others are nobodies. Kendrick did his thing, but it only seems like Drake, Wayne, Jay-Z, Eminem, Kanye West(when he’s not doing crazy shit) and maybe Kendrick are the only rappers who can consistently go platinum with their solo albums. Is it because of downloads or is it because music in general is garbage? Adele went Diamond not too long ago. Diamond!!! So albums can sell you just need to make good music.

      1. if peaking at 60 on the hot 100 can be considered “BIG”

        for comparisson Aston Martin Music with Drake was #30 and that was the second biggest hit of his career chart wise

    40. “in 2010, his last real hit without a big name feature”

      Funny you mention big name features. Every 50 Cent song these days has a feature. Kendrick. Eminem. Adam Levine. Alicia Keys. Jeezy. All that star power and 0 hits.

      1. YMCMB has been carrying Ross and MMG’s careers on their backs for years now. Without those YM features Ross would have fallen off long ago

    41. “But not very high at all”

      You wanna talk about not charting very high… Amusement Park #111. Do You Think About Me #107. Major Distribution #113 lol

      1. do you know how many singles Ross put out that didnt even chart!

        fat boy got 2 top 40 hits his whole career, One with drake and one with t-pain,

      1. and it didnt even crack the Hot 100, thats what we’re talking about here, REAL HITS, not songs that got on the R&B chart

    42. “and it didnt even crack the Hot 100, thats what we’re talking about here, REAL HITS”

      Cracking the top 100 doesn’t make a song a REAL HIT. The R&B chart is still authentic.

      1. “Cracking the top 100 doesn’t make a song a REAL HIT. The R&B chart is still authentic.”

        One big contradiction. Cracking the Hot 100, mainly the Top 40, does make a song a REAL HIT. The Hot 100 determines the biggest songs of the country and if a song makes the Top 40, it’s a hit. The R&B charts are not authentic at all; none of these other little charts are. You don’t decide the rules at all. Take a seat.

    43. “do you know how many singles Ross put out that didnt even chart”

      Ross has charted plenty of songs. Here I Am. Maybach Music 2. Magnificent.

      1. Here I Am peaked at #40 and had Nelly and Avery Storm

        Maybach Music 2 peaked at #92 and featured Kanye West, Lil Wayne AND T-Pain!

        Magnificent featured GOOD Music’s John Legend and peaked at #62

      1. Yet all of 50’s “recent flops” have charted higher than everything Ross has put out this year including 2 failed singles Box CHevy and No Games with Future. Better call Drake Wayne and Nicki for the next one!

    44. “The Hot 100 determines the biggest songs of the country and if a song makes the Top 40, it’s a hit”

      Biggest songs lol Whatever. It’s no secret that the biggest songs usually need to crack the top ten to be considered a hit. My Life landed at #20, definately not bad, but largely because it had Eminem and Adam Levine. Yet despite those two names, it faded faster than Tyga’s expense account. By that same token, Ross isn’t doing great either, but all I said was he charts alot of songs.

    45. “Better call Drake Wayne and Nicki for the next one!”

      Tell 50 that. He’s flopped despite collabo’s with Dre, Alicia Keys, Jeezy, Snoop, and most recently Kendrick.

    46. “Yet all of 50’s “recent flops” have charted higher than everything Ross has put out this year”

      You’re comparing two songs that probably won’t even be on the final cut of Mastermind. 50’s cuts are all off Street King Immortal. Bad sign.

      1. as we both know Ross’ album will be coming long before Street King Immortal, it’s supposed to be coming out sometime this year, as in the next 3 months and all his so called singles have tanked!

        if he takes them off the final cut its only because they failed. they were both advertised as singles off Mastermind

        and chances are half of 50’s new songs wont make the album

    47. “and chances are half of 50’s new songs wont make the album”

      That’s only because he keeps going back and recording more songs because the previous one’s failed to entertain anybody’s imagination.

    48. “in 2013 50 has had more songs chart than ross.. FACT”

      Another FACT. Aside from My Life, the rest of those songs flopped. Plus there’s still no album in sight. Guess Jimmy doesn’t put much stock in charting in the 100’s lol

      1. Yet all his throwaway songs still performed better than the new Rick Ross singles!!!

        They have high expectations for an artist like Curtis. Ross puts out forgettable album after forgettable album so no one really expects much.

      1. what do you mean itunes? they are listed as SINGLES. They dont sell songs as part of an album before it comes out dumbass that what fucking single is.Box Chevy is for sale on itunes and he was tweeting that shit everyday for months.

        but you cant sell something if no one gives a fuck when you put it out for free.

    49. “didnt even crack the hot 100”

      And like I told you the R&B chart is an authentic chart. Plus it was an R&B sounding song with Usher of all people. You can’t be this slow.

      1. a guy who listens to Birdman, Rick Ross, Pitbull and Meek Mill among others is telling me my taste sucks LOL

        he also said this about one of the GOATS

        “Biggie was a fat fuck with only average story telling skills. That second album only went diamond cause his bitch ass got taken out.”

        so naw son, YOUR TASTE SUCKS

      2. i know right, like a #15 song on the R&B charts with MOTHERFUCKING USHER on it is anything to brag about. shit how would any song with usher not make that chart there just isnt that much R&B

    50. “They dont sell songs as part of an album before it comes out”

      They do it all the time retard. For weeks you could click on Nothing Was The Same and see Wu Tang Forever on sale. Those two throwaway Ross songs aren’t being sold as Mastermind singles, and wisely so since artists release songs all the time that aren’t affliated with an album. They do it to generate buzz, or to make some small change before the real music drops. Your lack of knowledge is more frightening than BET’s fall lineup.

    51. “Ross puts out forgettable album after forgettable album so no one really expects much”

      Says you, a devoted Curtis Wackson worshipper.

    52. “They have high expectations for an artist like Curtis”

      Then why has it taken four years for the album to drop? There’s no expectation when there’s no fanbase. Jimmy knows this, and has been keeping Curtis at bay to remind him what the flip side of power feels like. 50 might as well be on E1 lol It’s actually quite sad. Here he was selling millions, seemingly untouchable, then it was gone, and artists like Ross with less sales, are stealing all of his thunder and having no problem getting albums released like real artists are supposed to do.

    53. “a guy who listens to Birdman, Rick Ross, Pitbull and Meek Mill among others is telling me my taste sucks”

      When your Ipod stars Macklemore, Kendrick Lamar, and J Cole, then you don’t have a healthy leg to stand on.

      1. told you plenty of times ive never listened to macklemore, but you cant deny hes been more successful in 2013 than ross has been his whole life

    54. “No Games was released and advertised as a single just like Box Chevy. just cause they flopped dont change that”

      For the last time tiny. Box Chevy isn’t/wasn’t promoted as being a Mastermind single. Artists release random songs all the time. I realize Kendrick’s fake plaque has you blinded, but there’s a big world out there just waiting for you to gain some much needed experience in it.

      1. no games was thought and it tanked harder than any recent 50 single

        “On September 5, 2013, Ross premiered the first official single from MasterMind, “No Games” featuring Future produced by J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League.[36] The following day it was released to Urban contemporary radio.[“

      2. yeah hes mad jealous kendrick got one in 9 months but Officer Ricky couldnt achieve that in 9 years with everyone in the industry backing him and mtv naming him the hottest MC LMAO

    55. I just saw the Aston Martin Music video this morning and thats more of a Drake and Chrisette record than Rick Ross by a long shot.

    56. Quoteman go check out that brand new forbes list and see where your boy Ross and MMG landed! LOL Ross made as much as Mac Miller and Questlove!!!!

      Macklemore, Kendrick,Wiz shit even 50 cent made more than the biggest boss!!!!

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